Richard W. Hatcher III is a native of Richmond, Virginia. He graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University in 1973 with a BA in History. His lifelong love of the subject began during the Civil War Centennial, and grew when he later worked as a seasonal employee at Richmond National Battlefield Park. Rick began working permanently with the National Park Service in 1976 and he retired as Historian from Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park in 2015. Rick is the author or co-author of numerous articles and books including the award-winning Wilson's Creek, The Second Major Battle of the Civil War and the Men Who Fought It (2001), and Wilson's Creek, Pea Ridge, and Prairie Grove and is a regular on the Civil War speaking circuit.
"""Richard Hatcher's Thunder in the Harbor is a highly readable and informative history of Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, from its construction after the War of 1812 through its role in the Civil War and up to the present. As a historian at the Fort Sumter Fort Moultrie National Historical Park for more than 22 years, Rick qualifies as the world's most knowledgeable expert on the fort's history. His expertise, combined with his talent as an engaging narrator, has resulted in a book that occupies an honored space on my Civil War bookshelf. I highly recommend it.""--Gordon C. Rhea, author of five books on the Overland Campaign, and ""Rick Hatcher's outstanding book fills a gaping hole in the literature of the Civil War. Using many sources missed by countless historians, Hatcher has reconstructed the fort's history from its origins through its ultimate transfer to the National Park Service in 1948. Hatcher describes all of the combat and personal sacrifice that took place in and around the fort. Thunder in the Harbor is engrossing and authoritative. It will stand as the definitive account of Fort Sumter for years to come.""--Kyle S. Sinisi, Ph.D., Professor of History, The Citadel ""A detailed, authoritative, and expansive new study of the centerpiece of Charleston's defensive network. Lovers of American history should visit this beautiful city. Take a carriage ride, sample the food, and relax at The Battery. But before you take that boat ride to Fort Sumter, prepare yourself properly with Rick Hatcher's fascinating Thunder in the Harbor.""--Pat Brennan, co-author of Gettysburg in Color (Vols. 1 and 2) ""Fort Sumter, the guardian of Charleston and the Gibraltar of the Confederacy, withstood the greatest series of artillery bombardments ever endured in the Western Hemisphere. Rick Hatcher, the former historian of Fort Sumter Fort Moultrie National Historical Park, brings it all to life in the most comprehensive account to date. Thunder in the Harbor is a must for anyone interested in the history of Charleston, the Civil War, and Fort Sumter's indomitable legacy.""--Stephen R. Wise, author of Gate of Hell: Campaign for Charleston Harbor 1863"